The invention relates to a recording and/or reproducing apparatus for a record carder in the form of a tape which extends between two juxtaposed rotatable reel hubs, which apparatus includes a forward winding mandrel and a reverse winding mandrel for driving the two reel hubs, a forward drive wheel which is in driving engagement with the forward winding mandrel and which has a friction-wheel portion via which it can be driven in a "normal forward" mode, a reverse drive wheel which is in driving engagement with the reverse winding mandrel and which has a toothed-wheel portion via which it can be driven in a "fast reverse" mode, and a drive means for driving the forward drive wheel and the reverse drive wheel, the drive means comprising a drive shaft which can be driven by a motor, which is disposed substantially in an area between the two drive wheels, and which can be set to different operating positions, which drive shaft comprises a friction-wheel drive portion which, in a normal-forward driving position of the drive shaft, can drive the friction-wheel portion of the forward drive wheel in the "normal forward" mode, and a toothed-wheel drive portion which, in a fast-reverse driving position of the drive shaft, can drive the toothed-wheel portion of the reverse drive wheel in the "fast reverse" mode, the drive means in addition being capable of driving the forward drive wheel in a "fast forward" mode.
Such an apparatus is known as a so-called pocket dictation machine which has been marketed by Philips Electronics N.V. under the type designation LFH 0596. In the "fast forward" mode of this known apparatus the forward drive wheel is driven by the same parts of the drive means as in the "normal forward" mode. In the "fast forward" mode, in the same way as in the "normal forward" mode, the friction-wheel drive portion of the drive shaft, which shaft can be driven by means of the motor, is brought into driving engagement with the friction-wheel portion of the forward drive wheel in that the drive shaft is also moved into its normal forward driving position in the "fast forward" mode, but in the "fast forward" mode the motor is connected to a non-regulated comparatively high supply voltage produced by batteries whereas in the "normal forward" mode the motor is connected to a regulated comparatively low supply voltage. The non-regulated supply voltage is only about twice as high as the regulated supply voltage, so that in the "fast forward" mode the motor and, consequently, the forward drive wheel is driven only about twice as fast as in the "normal forward"mode, as a result of which the speed of the forward drive wheel in the "fast forward" mode is rather limited. This leads to a comparatively slow transport of the record carrier in the "fast forward" mode, which in its turn results in an undesirably long rewind time. Moreover, the use of the friction-wheel drive portion of the drive shaft and the friction-wheel portion of the fast-forward drive wheel in the "fast forward" mode also results in a comparatively low efficiency being attainable in the "fast forward" mode, which is a disadvantage particularly if the motor is powered by batteries, because as a result of a low efficiency only comparatively short operating times are obtainable with such batteries.